Kolkata, The Special Task Force of West Bengal Police on Monday arrested a suspected associate of alleged Pakistani intelligence operative Rana Rauf, who was earlier apprehended in connection with an alleged espionage network operating from Kolkata, a senior officer said.
Police further suspect that Imran was involved in preparing passports using forged documents and that the group was allegedly attempting to establish sleeper cells of militants with Kolkata as a base. Rauf, arrested last week in Habra in North 24 Parganas district of Bengal, is suspected by the STF to be a native of Faisalabad in Pakistan. Investigators allege that he had links with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence and had entered India in 2012 using forged documents after spending several years in Nepal.
The accused, identified as Imran, was arrested from a flat in the Topsia area of the city, he said.
“The investigation has revealed that Imran was allegedly assisting Rauf in arranging documents for an Indian passport.
A senior STF officer said the arrest was part of the investigation into the network allegedly being built by Rauf in Kolkata. We are examining his links with other members of the network and verifying the documents and other material recovered during the investigation,” the officer said.
The STF is now questioning Imran and examining his alleged contacts with Rauf and others as part of the continuing investigation.
